Cheese processors are well known in the art as cheese graters or cheese grinders, and generally include a body having a work compartment with a cheese grating or grinding cylinder rotatably mounted therein. The cheese grating or grinding cylinder includes a plurality of teeth or sharp-edged holes to grate or grind the cheese into particles when a cheese block is pressed against the grating or grinding cylinder. A spring biased pusher is attached or incorporated into a door of the work compartment so that the cheese block placed within the work compartment is pushed against the grating or grinding cylinder when the compartment door is closed. The cheese grating or grinding cylinder is rotated either manually or electrically by a motor. Such cheese processors are described, for example in U.S. Pat. No. 1,106,931, issued to Donisi on Aug. 11, 1914 and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,364,037, issued to Bigelow on Nov. 15, 1994.
In these existing cheese processors the load force to the cheese block against the grating or grinding cylinder is gradually reduced when the cheese block is being ground because of the decrease in the volume of the cheese block. Therefore the existing cheese processors can work properly only when the cheese block contained therein is relatively large.
Another problem of the existing cheese processors particularly relating to the hand-held electric types, lies in that the body generally contains not only the grating or grinding cylinder but also a power unit including a motor/transmission mechanism and batteries, and therefore the work compartment for containing the cheese block is relatively limited. Thus the existing cheese processors need frequent reloading of fresh cheese blocks to replace previously loaded and partially consumed cheese blocks, which is not desirable, particularly when the cheese processor is placed on tables for restaurant customers.
It is also desirable to maintain a relatively low temperature in the work compartment of a cheese grater or grinder in order to keep the loaded cheese block fresh. Various food processors with refrigeration features are well known in the art as are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,665,724, issued to Lundell on Jan. 12, 1954, U.S. Pat. No. 2,990,864, issued to Zweben on Jul. 4, 1961, U.S. Pat. No. 3,065,779, issued to Matarrese on Nov. 27, 1962. However, the structures of the refrigeration features of such prior art food processors cannot be incorporated into a hand-held electric cheese grater or grinder in a relatively compact configuration.
Therefore, there is a need for an improved cheese processor which overcomes the drawbacks of the existing cheese graters or grinders.